


We Belong to the Sea

by Scarlett_Rogue



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: M/M, Mentions of Blood, Siren alec, Trans Male Character, Violence, just trans sirens falling in love with shipwrecked sailors, mild mentions of transphobia, mundane Magnus, that's the whole fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-23
Updated: 2018-05-23
Packaged: 2019-05-10 09:39:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14734529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarlett_Rogue/pseuds/Scarlett_Rogue
Summary: When a sleepless night weakens Magnus' judgement he finds himself lured in by a mournful song and shipwrecked on an island surrounded by deadly sirens. Magnus soon finds an unlikely alliance when Alec arrives to stop his clan mate from killing Magnus, and that alliance blossoms into something neither of them expected.





	We Belong to the Sea

_Stupid,_ Magnus chided himself. _Wreckless. Dangerous. Stupid._

His back ached where he was lying on water-soaked sand, shards of wood from his ship all around his body and scattered across the little island. The wind was howling ominously in his ears, a soundtrack to his failure. Magnus wanted to blame the wail of the siren, that unholy, inhuman melody that seeped into his cold bones and caused him to change course toward the little island, but truly it was the many sleepless nights that caused him to let his guard down. His system was weakened; he wasn't thinking straight. He was lucky to be alive after his boat hit a massive pile of rocks on the edge of the island and sent his body sailing fifteen feet. 

He sat up slowly, assessing the aches in his muscles. Nothing seemed to be broken or torn thankfully, but his back was sore and his head was pounding, a sure sign that he'd hit it pretty hard on the fall. Worse than either of those aches was the soft, continuing wail of the siren. The haunting voice was deep, a fact that didn't surprise Magnus at all. His last relationship had been to a man with a deep, comforting voice and warm embrace. Of _course_ his sleep-deprived brain would crave that sort of attention. 

So much for a simple, routine trip across the islands. 

Magnus pushed his body up to a standing position and glanced around swiftly. The siren sounded close, too close. Close enough that Magnus felt the tell-tale urgency in his limbs to find the source, while simultaneously wanting to run in the other direction. _He sounds like home..._ Magnus shook his head as if it would shake the intrusive thoughts out. He was stuck on the island at the very least for tonight, maximum of three days. Ragnor would certainly get suspicious tomorrow morning when Magnus didn't show up perfectly on time as he always did and he'd send his men out to look for his best friend. Magnus just needed to survive for a few days and stay the hell away from the siren. With everything in him, he turned and walked in the opposite direction of the haunting song. It was strange; Magnus had encountered sirens before, had heard the songs they used on him many times. This song was so...morose. So wounded. Yet it called out to his very soul. He pushed his legs faster through the wet sand to escape that sound, that desire. 

Magnus found his travel bag up the beach, still tightly wound. In it contained first aid materials, a change of clothes, and emergency food supplies. He slung it over his back, grunting as it landing with a 'thud' on a particularly pissed off portion of skin, and assessed his surroundings. Going inland would keep him far away from the siren, but it would also lead him into the path of some of the more dangerous native species on the island. Magnus decided to stay close to the water but move around the island so as to avoid the song he could still faintly hear amid the wind. Sirens were obnoxiously patient but they weren't used to traveling to their victims. Magnus hoped the distance would keep the predator away from him. He made his way slowly around the island as the sun set and the temperature dropped. 

Night fell faster than he would have liked before he got to a spot he thought was safe enough. A quick look around showed that fire wood wasn't far, but he was still too concerned about drawing the attention of his siren to light a fire. He dropped his bag on the ground and pulled out a thick sweater. 

"Now, what do we have here?"

Magnus whipped around and froze. _Beautiful_ was his first thought, followed by _run_. The siren in front of him had dark bronze skin and short, dark hair. His features were rounder and playful. His eyes held a glint of mischief. His lips pulled back into a smile and Magnus could vaguely make out the razor-sharp tips. He was undoubtedly gorgeous and almost certainly going to be the death of Magnus. So, so slowly, Magnus tried to work his knife out of his bag where he was still half-kneeling. 

"Y-you must be the reason my ship is in ruins," Magnus tried to sound confident and annoyed but his voice shook. The siren's grin widened, his teeth catching in the moon light, and sprawled half out of the water with his head propped up by his arms. He looked so relaxed and carefree that for a moment Magnus felt himself relax. 

"Nah, that was a member of my clan. He's been wailing all day. It's actually getting pretty annoying. I'm Raj." He held his hand out as if he expected Magnus to shake it. When Magnus didn't budge from his spot Raj laughed and smacked his hand down on the sand. "I guess I understand why he was wailing for you, though. You're cute." 

Magnus felt his body tense up at the compliment. A compliment from a siren was never a good thing. 

"Much as I appreciate the words, I have to be on my way now." Magnus stood slowly and took a few steps backward toward the trees. He immediately saw something thrash around in the water. A tail. _My God._ He couldn't even accurately guess how many feet that tail was, and he didn't want to hang out to find out.

"Leaving so soon? But we haven't even gotten to know each other yet." Raj grinned fully now. Each tooth transformed to the razors he'd barely glimpsed earlier. Magnus' hand wrapped around the knife in his bag and let the bag fall just as Raj used his tail to launch himself forward. His dilated pupils and sharp teeth were the last thing Magnus saw before their bodies collided. Knife facing out, he heard Raj scream in agony. Not a second later Magnus was pinned to the sand as razor teeth sunk into his neck. He screamed and tried to pul the knife out so he could get another stab in but Raj was faster. He grabbed Magnus' hand and twisted it almost to the point of breaking. He sat up, his lower body crushing Magnus painfully, his mouth dripping with blood. 

"My people were right. Humans don't have any manners," he said as he twisted Magnus' arm further. Magnus groaned in pain, almost certain that wrist was going to break any moment. "How dare you wash up to a siren's island and try to dismiss _me_." He let out another violent shriek, baring his teeth, and lunged forward, Magnus closed his eyes, silently praying that Ragnor would never find his body. Not like this. 

Suddenly the weight was snatched from him. He gasped and tried to follow the pull of Raj's body across the beach back to the water. Raj was screaming in a way that Magnus had never heard from a siren. He was in danger. Magnus crawled up toward the trees as fast as he sore body would allow him. Dizziness was creeping in slowly due to blood loss but he pressed his hand to the wound on his neck and kept his eyes firmly on the thrashing of the water. After what felt like an eternity the water calmed and stilled. Magnus let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. His head was starting to spin.

The water started to shake again and Magnus tensed, wondering if Raj was coming back to finish the job. Magnus knew he was no match for an angry siren, no human was. The creature who emerged from the water, however, wasn't Raj. His skin was pale and littered with dark markings, but what Magnus noticed immediately was the blood saturated on his chest. He was hurt. Badly.

"A...a little help here?" The siren pulled himself up onto the beach and heaved over, breaths deep and labored. Magnus wasn't sure why he did it; maybe because the siren had just saved his life, or maybe it was because he recognized that hauntingly deep voice as the siren who caused him to crash his ship. Either way, Magnus took a deep breath and slowly made his way toward the water. He grabbed his travel bag on the way down; either one of them was about to die or they were both getting first aid treatment. Magnus was too worn down to care which at this point. He dropped the bag right next to the injured siren and felt his body sag to the sand next to him. They were so close. No one in Magnus' crew had ever gotten this close to a siren and lived to talk about it. Magnus probably wouldn't either. In the moment he couldn't find the energy to be frightened. 

The siren pushed himself up as much as he could bare and Magnus was able to make out the gashes across his chest, two deep marks that wouldn't stop bleeding. 

"What happened?" Magnus' voice was barely a whisper but the siren heard him and...grimaced? 

"I...was stupid." 

Magnus let out a halted laugh, remembering not an hour earlier when he cursed himself for being so careless. It would seem he wasn't the only one. 

"For luring me here?"

The siren's frown deepened. "I'm sorry, that wasn't my intention. I was crying out for help. I thought I would attract a member of my clan, a family member perhaps, but...nobody came." His deep voice twisted with anger and hurt. "Well, nobody but you."

"You sounded like you were mourning. I don't know why that made me come to you," Magnus signed, once more annoyed with himself. 

"You're bleeding," the siren tried to reach for his neck but Magnus' instincts kicked into gear and he jerked out of reach. "I'm not going to hurt you. I promise. I wrecked your ship, at least let me make sure you're alright." Magnus eyed him wearily but gave in soon after. He was too tired to care what happened next. And for unknown reasons, he felt like he could trust this siren.

"Well, you _did_ save me from Raj." Magnus leaned forward and allowed the siren's hand to inspect the wound on his neck. It stung like a bitch and Magnus wanted to pull away, but the siren was staring at him so intensely that he didn't dare move.

"Sorry about Raj. He's...very committed to upholding the myths of my people. It's not that common these days for us to lure sailors to their deaths but some of us will always be...traditionalists." He spat the last word out like an insult. "I can fix your wound, but you need to trust me. And it will feel weird." 

"Do what you must," Magnus muttered. Black spots were starting to speckle his vision. If this siren was willing to save him he wouldn't argue. If he was just looking for an easier way to kill him, Magnus welcomed that too. The siren placed both hands on either side of his neck and pulled his body closer. Just mere inches apart Magnus could tell he had beautiful hazel eyes, strong features, a scar over his eyebrow that was oddly beautiful. Magnus wasn't sure if it was the blood loss or the charm of the siren but he felt warm and safe. The siren leaned a few inches in, bringing his lips to Magnus' neck, and Magnus took what he was sure was his last breath. His eyes snapped open in shock when he felt a wet tongue run over his wound over and over. Like he was cleaning him? Magnus felt weak in an entirely different way. He felt like he was on fire. He fell forward into the siren's arms and, to his embarrassment, groaned as the siren continued to lick his neck slow and thorough. It made him feel drunk. Magnus gulped in a few deep breaths when the siren finally stopped. With oxygen flooding his brain Magnus realized the pain was gone and he felt stronger. He pulled away and stared in awe at the beautiful siren in front of him. The siren smiled gently, the hint of blood at the corners of his mouth.

"Healing spit. Bet your research never revealed that about us," he laughed softly. Magnus chuckled along until his eyes caught sight of the ridiculous amount of blood on the siren's chest. 

"Let me return the favor." He reached around for his bag. When he turned back with a first aid kit the siren was almost entirely in the water again, pushing himself out to sea. "Wait! You're hurt!" 

The siren smiled. "I'll be fine in the morning. Just have to go see a friend. I'll check up on you tomorrow." With that, he sunk below the small waves and was gone. Magnus felt suddenly cold and alone and so, so vulnerable. He made his way up the beach again, this time headed straight for the trees. Screw these sirens. 

~~~

The first thing Magnus was aware of when he awoke the next day was the blinding light peaking through the trees. The second thing was the haunting melody of his unlikely savior. A voice in the back of his head told him to ignore it; he'd been lucky last night to not be a siren's midnight snack and his luck might not last if he tempted fate. But he remembered the oddly intimate feel of the siren licking his neck, healing a human for god knows what reason, and the memory led him back to the beach. The siren was perched on a tall rock and the waves splashed around him. He stopped singing when he saw Magnus approach and smiled.

"You're healed," was Magnus' first words to the siren. The two deep gashes that had kept Magnus up for hours last night were now two thin lines of shells and pearls across the siren's chest. They looked like beautifully bedazzled pectorals. 

"Oh yeah," the siren glanced down and grinned happily. "My sister did it. Izzy is incredible!" His tail lifted out of the water happily and slapped down, sending water droplets everywhere. It was so much longer than Magnus expected - eight feet at least, with sharp-looking barbs running down the top and rows of small fins on either side. His tail was a gorgeous ombre effect of pink, blue, and white, iridescent and shimmering in the sun. He was nothing short of stunning. 

The siren watched Magnus curiously and Magnus realized that he was being studied just as strongly. This must be the closest the siren had ever come to a human. 

"We never had a proper introduction," Magnus smiled and stepped up on the rock beside the siren. They were almost level and only about two feet apart but Magnus didn't feel scared. "I'm Magnus Bane." 

The siren smiled softly. "Everyone calls me Alec." 

Magnus tried to hide his surprise at such a human name, no doubt short for Alexander. He'd heard of sirens and merpeople having fancy, inhuman names but every one he'd heard since last night was oddly common. _His_ name was more unique than these sirens.

"So Alexander, what stupid thing did you do to injure yourself last night?" 

Alec beamed at him and Magnus was momentarily dazed. He wasn't sure if this was just the normal effect of being in the presence of a siren or if it was just how stunning and genuine Alec was. He had no guide book for this odd encounter.

"I...um. Well. I got tired of waiting to have my breasts removed so I tried to do it myself."

Magnus jerked backward in shock. He looked Alec over once more and noted the roundness of his hips, something Raj didn't have, and the exact line on the shells over his chest. He shook his head as if chastising a siren.

"That was indeed ridiculously stupid. You could have killed yourself! There was so much blood..."

"Yeah, yeah," Alec waved it off. "But I didn't. And Izzy fixed me up perfectly. It's not enough to stop some of my family from calling me Alexandra but it's a hell of a start." 

Magnus smiled softly. "Are you happy?" He glanced as the pearls and shells that were healed halfway into the skin. They were breath-taking. Alec's smile could blind a ship full of sailors. 

"I'm happier than I've been in a long time." 

Magnus glanced at Alec's tail once more as it sloshed around the water like a cat relaxing on a perch and fought back the urge to laugh. The irony of the colors of Alec's tail didn't escape him. 

"Alec," Magnus started. Alec's hazel eyes locked onto his and Magnus felt like it shouldn't be this hard to breathe. "I can't thank you enough for saving me last night. Normally I'm a little smarter about avoiding danger, but...well, I would have died if you hadn't stopped Raj. So thank you."

"You don't have to thank me. I was the reason you were stranded here in the first place." Alec looked apologetic, such an odd concept for Magnus to wrap his mind around. He was beginning to think his siren education had been one-sided. 

"No, I should have been able to resist your song. I've never fallen for a siren's song before. I don't know why I did last night."

"Perhaps," Alec leaned his body closer. "You somehow knew you were hearing the song of a wounded man in need of help."

Magnus shrugged. It's not like he did anything to help Alec. His sister saved him, not Magnus. He looked over to say as much, but stopped when he saw the way Alec was looking at him.

"What?"

"Are all humans this beautiful?" Alec's voice was filled with awe. His eyes were intense and piercing. It made Magnus feel the way he did last night when Alec was healing him; intoxicated and out of control. 

"Are all sirens this captivating? Is this some kind of siren magic I haven't heard of yet?" Alec looked startled. 

"I don't think so? I mean, not if we aren't trying." Magnus smiled at the blush that was forming on his cheeks.

"Well, are you trying?" Why was he leaning forward? "Are you trying to captivate me?"

They were inches away again and memories of last night flooded back to Magnus. It shouldn't have felt so intimate, so consuming. Alec was just healing his wound, yet Magnus felt in that moment that he didn't need to be anywhere else but on this beach with Alec.

"Not against your will," Alec breathed. "But if you find me captivating I'm not going to argue." 

And just like that their lips were touching. It was just like the night before. Magnus felt unsteady, uncontrolled. He felt full of warmth and safety in Alec's arms. Their lips moved silently, softly, and Alec tasted like the sea. 

"Stay with me," Alec muttered when they parted for air. Well, Magnus parted for air. Alec's gills were doing all the breathing for him.

"I can't. I need to get back to my island, my people. And I'm sure yours are missing you." 

"I doubt it," Alec spat out. He was pulling away and Magnus just wanted to pull him back in and hold him close. It was the most absurd feeling in the world to find himself growing attached to a siren. "They have their golden child. Their 'only son'." His tail smacked the water aggressively. Agitated. Magnus took a few moments to think. Maybe this was just siren magic but this siren saved his life for no other reason than it being the right thing to do. Magnus owed him something. 

"Come with me." Alec looked up at him in shock. "My crew is rowdy and weird but I know Ragnor and Cat will be open to meeting you." 

"I don't know if that's a good idea..." 

"You can come and go as you please. The ocean is yours to concur. But if you decide you want a break from your family you can stay with me." Magnus smiled at how weird and lovely that sounded. A siren boyfriend who pops in every so often for kisses and stories of the sea. Magnus thought that maybe he'd lost his mind at this point. But Alec was smiling warmly at him and nodding slightly, so maybe Magnus didn't care if he'd truly lost it. 

"You don't think we're too..."

"Different?" Magnus smiled. "I'm a sailor. You're a siren. We both belong to the sea. Maybe we're not so different after all."

Alec smiled and leaned in, connecting their lips once more. They stayed like that, kissing and talking and kissing some more until Magnus got too hungry to think. It wasn't much longer after that when Magnus spotted Ragnors ship across the water.

"Promise me you'll visit?" Magnus said as they laid in the water together. Magnus' clothes were soaked but Alec was letting him gently stroke his tail and the unexpected softness of his scales was mesmerizing. 

"I promise. I won't stop thinking about you until I see you again. Promise you won't be scared when I sing to you?" Alec turned his head, worry in his dark eyes. Magnus chuckled.

"Oh honey, I was never afraid of your song. I was afraid of how much I wanted you." And with that Magnus kissed Alec on the sand as waves gently washed over them. He would have so much explaining to do, but one thing was for certain: crashing his ship was the best choice Magnus ever made.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm probably going to write a sequel if people liked this. It'll explore the early stages of this weird relationship and how they cope with each other, their friends and family, etc. This is really just the tip of the iceberg.


End file.
